Michigan’s Government Workforce is the Twenty-Fourth “Least Productive” in 2013

Oct 15, 2015

There are two major elements to look at when examining a state’s government workforce—the number of employees and the level of their pay. Each element is measured relative to the national average and summed together to obtain an overall measure of workforce productivity. By this metric, Michigan has the twenty-fourth least productive state and local government workforce in the country.

As shown in Chart 1, for state and local government employment, Michigan has 15.2 employees for every 100 employees in the private sector—this is -7 percent below the national average of 16.4 and is the 10th lowest ratio in the country.

As shown in Chart 2, for state and local government compensation, Michigan’s government employees earn 14 percent more than those in the private sector—this is 12 percent higher than the national average of 13 percent and is the 20th highest compensation ratio in the country.

As shown in Chart 3, for state and local wages and salaries, Michigan’s government employees earn -3 percent less than those in the private sector—this is the 17th highest wages and salaries ratio in the country and higher than the national average of -8.percent.

As shown in Chart 4, for state and local benefits (pensions, health insurance, etc.), Michigan’s employees earn 97 percent more than those in the private sector—this is -17 percent lower than the national average of 117 percent and is the 24th highest benefit ratio in the country.

Of course, efficiency for local government is more usefully measured on a more local scale. As such, we have also calculated the employment and compensations ratios of local government workers for every county in Michigan.

The Michigan counties with the highest local government employment ratios include:

Baraga County, MI (66.8)

Chippewa County, MI (61)

Isabella County, MI (59)

The Michigan counties with the lowest local government employment ratios include:

Oakland County, MI (5.5)

Kent County, MI (5.8)

Kalamazoo County, MI (8)

The Michigan counties with the highest local government compensation ratios include:

Luce County, MI (88 percent)

Missaukee County, MI (80 percent)

Cheboygan County, MI (64 percent)

The Michigan counties with the lowest local government compensation ratios include:

Kalkaska County, MI (-16 percent)

Midland County, MI (-7 percent)

Mecosta County, MI (-6 percent)

Overall, it is Michigan’s higher-than-average state and local government compensation ratio, driven by the wages and salaries ratio, which is the primary source of the poor government workforce metric. Fortunately, much of that is offset by lower-than-average state and local government employment ratio (the 10th lowest in the country).

J. Scott Moody

Scott has nearly 20 years of experience as a public policy economist. He is the author, co-author and editor of over 180 studies and books. His professional experience also includes positions at the American Conservative Union Foundation, Granite Institute, Federalism In Action, Maine Heritage Policy Center, Tax Foundation, and Heritage Foundation.